Gennie and inverter

[Inxtsea]

I am a new owner of a 340 Sundancer, equipped with a 5kw gen. The salon tv only works when the generator is on or when plugged into shore power. My question is can I also connect an inverter then plug my tv into the converter enabling me to operate the tv without running the generator? Understanding that most inverters will sound an alarm should power be diminished to a level that requires charging.

Hope you can be of assistance.

Also if you know where the tv gets its power, (plugged in) would also be appreaciated.

J Henry

 

[tbirdvet]

I have 2 TV's on my boat and one is plugged into an inverter and works great so I assume you could do the same if inverter sized correctly and you can get to the power cord from TV which is not always easy to get to..

 

[Inxtsea]

Thanks, yeah my falt screen in the galley seems to be that way although I haven't probed a lot, the tv seems hard fixed to the bulkhead. any suggestions?

 

[Henry Boyd]

A good inverter and installation will probably run a minimum of $500.00 installed correctly to the boat's electrical system. Most TVs these days run on 12 vdc. They get 110 VAC and then it gets converted to dc for the actual tv operation. Why not just find a nice TV that has a brick transformer? Then throw the brick away and wire the TV to the boat's 12 Vdc system. It will probably be cheaper, and you get a new TV.

Henry

 

[JimFromMD]

Hi Henry,
So I know this may be a dumb question, but how is a "properly installed" inverter configured. My TV doesnt have the power brick, so I've been running it off of a 12v, 400w cigarette lighter style inverter if I dont have the generator running. I've toyed with the idea of a bigger fixed mount inverter but just havent looked into it at this point. I've always wondered if the inverter gets connected into the 110 volt circuts from which you would use the same outlets, or if there would be a separate set of outlets that only operate from the inverter output.

I'm no electrician, so I would have it professionally done, but just trying to picture how things would work.

Thanks
James

 

[390x]

A small inverter (just big enough for the tv) shouldn't cost you anywhere near 500 bucks to install. I know this because i did it last year.

 

[Henry Boyd]

Hi Henry,
So I know this may be a dumb question, but how is a "properly installed" inverter configured. My TV doesnt have the power brick, so I've been running it off of a 12v, 400w cigarette lighter style inverter if I dont have the generator running. I've toyed with the idea of a bigger fixed mount inverter but just havent looked into it at this point. I've always wondered if the inverter gets connected into the 110 volt circuts from which you would use the same outlets, or if there would be a separate set of outlets that only operate from the inverter output.

I'm no electrician, so I would have it professionally done, but just trying to picture how things would work.

Thanks
James

James,

I was considering a hardwired set up that would energize the entire AC system. Since that would be best installed in the ER to be as close a possible to the batteries, then a marine grade ignition protected would be needed. This would also mean that the AC it introduced to the boat's electrical system would then be grounded and there would be an isolation switch to make sure that AC did not come from gen,or shore at the same time.


You certainly could do it with a small unit that plugged into the DC side through one of the cigar lighters and then had the TV plugged into that.

Henry

 

[Lucky's]

I installed a 1600w inverter last year. I used 2 gauge cable and ran it to the gunwale on the port side. About 6' of cable. I then mounted a single gang junction box behind the interior wall of the gunwale and installed a 120v switch. I ran 6 gauge wire from the inverter to the the switch and then from the switch into my main AC panel. I installed a 3 prong plug on the end of the 6 gauge wire to plug into the converter. I also installed a second battery and ran it in parallel to my house battery. When I leave the dock, I power up my inverter and switch the 120v switch to inverter (made labels for switch position, shore and inverter). This sends power to my entire AC panel at this point, so whatever breaker I turn on is powered up. The only ones I ever use are the refrigerator breaker and the outlets breaker. This enables me to have a tv on, phone charging, ice maker still making ice, etc. This set has worked great for me and I haven't had a dead battery yet...btw, total cost including inverter and battery around $350-$400.00.

 

[Alex F]

IMO, it all depends on what you're planning to plug in to your inverter. If it's just for the flat screen TV, then I think the approach should be much simpler. I did this type of project on my 320 (installed cockpit TV) and on my 420 (installed bridge TV). In both cases I got 400W-800W(peak) small inverter. It does not require monster cables. I used (going from the memory at the moment) something like #12, I don't recall going as thick as #10. I ran the line to it's own breaker in ER (on 320) and fuse in the bridge panel (on 420). I always mounted the inverter not far from the TV where I feel it fits best. In the gas boat you don't want regular (non-ignition protected) inverter in the ER. The inverter is way under $100 and installation is about 1hr or 2hr at the most. I think that this is something that doesn't require over thinking and you definitely don't need anything near 1000W. I've had 26" DVD/TV combo working (in test phase, before I installed permanent inverter) off basic 100W inverter plugged in to a cigaret lighter and it had no issues at all.